End Of The Road
by alwayssmilingsam
Summary: Here is is - the end of End of the Road
1. Good ParentBad Parent

**Here is the first in a series of oneshots that follow Nikola and Helen's adventures in parenting. I hope you enjoy.**

Nikola walked into Helen's office and unceremoniously dropped their screaming two year old daughter in her lap.

"I cannot be expected to work under these conditions!"

Helen chose to ignore her husband's outburst for the moment and focus on soothing their screaming daughter. She adjusted Ruby on her lap to allow the child to rest her head against her left breast while a chubby little hand rested on her right. She had stopped feeding Ruby six months ago but the child, not unlike her father, still found Helens ample cleavage comforting.

Now safely in the loving embrace of her mother, who was gently rubbing circles on her daughters back, Ruby's screams turned to hiccupping sobs.

Helen turned her attention to Nikola who had seated himself opposite her at the desk.

"How do you do that?" He asked impatiently, not liking the fact that he was not the best person at comforting their daughter. "I picked her up and cuddled her, I rubbed circles on her back and she just screamed louder."

Helen's initial reaction to the petulant look on her husband's face was to laugh but she could tell by the tone of his voice that he saw himself as a failure because he wasn't able to comfort his own daughter and Helen knew very well that Nikola never liked to fail – at anything.

"What exactly happened?"

"We were in my lab, Ruby was in her playpen and I made the most amazing discovery. If you submerge the rock you found in Bolivia in ….

"Nikola! Focus!"

"Oh right sorry, but remind me to tell you about it later." He grinned and Helen made a mental note to keep their daughter in her office for the next few days, if Nikola had made some kind of discovery – who knows what might happen down there – at the very least he would end up so focussed he would forget to feed her. "Anyway, she wanted ice cream and I said no."

Helen smiled, proud of Nikola for not giving in to their daughters every whim. Unfortunately he had had to learn that lesson the hard way.

::::::

Helen had walked into the kitchen to find Ruby happily sitting in her high chair, smothered in chocolate ice cream at 8.30 in the morning.

"What, in the name of all things holy, is going on?" She demanded.

Nikola looked up and smiled at his beautiful wife. "I knew you were busy today so I thought I would give Ruby her breakfast."

"And just when did ice cream become an appropriate breakfast dish?" Helen didn't know whether to be furious or burst out laughing.

"Uhh Uhhh Uhh I told you." The big guy muttered from the other side of the kitchen, knowing this was not going to be pretty. Magnus was a stickler for a healthy diet.

"I asked her what she wanted for breakfast and she said ice cream."

"Nikola she's two! Of course she wants ice cream but that doesn't mean she gets it!"

"In my defence I did suggest cereal but she started to cry and you know I can't stand it when she cries." Nikola said as he cleaned up his daughter.

Helen felt her frustration levels growing. Ruby was going to grow up to be the most spoilt child imaginable if Nikola kept this up. Helen for the life of her couldn't think of a way to get Nikola to understand that constantly giving in to their daughter was not always the best way to deal with her tantrums – it only made things worse in the long term. It turned out though that it was Ruby, herself, who held the answer.

Once Nikola had finished cleaning her, he lifted his daughter out of the high chair and held her aloft.

"What does mummy know hmmmmm, my little Ruby loved her ice cream breakfast." Without any warning Ruby made the most horrendous gagging sound and promptly vomited all over the front of her father.

Nikola stood there, literally dripping in chocolate ice cream vomit, still holding a crying Ruby in the air, completely unsure of what to do next but knowing this was easily the most disgusting situation he had ever found himself in.

Helen took in the scene before her and promptly burst into laughter. Lesson learned. In response to her laughter Ruby started laughing too, now that she no longer had a belly overstuffed with ice cream. Safe in the knowledge that her daughter felt fine, Helen left the kitchen and headed to her office still chuckling, thinking of how much her fanatical husband was going to hate having to clean up that mess.

::::::

Helen smiled. "Well of course she wouldn't let you comfort her – you were the one saying no. Remember the other day when we were at the park and I told her she wasn't allowed to go near the water but she wanted to get closer to the ducks?"

Nikola nodded.

"Who was it she went running to when mean old mummy wouldn't let her do what she wanted?"

Nikola got a ghost of a smile and thought of all the other times Helen had disciplined their headstrong child and she had come running to him for comfort.

"Shouldn't someone have written a book or something about all this parenting stuff?"

"Only about 10 000 of them." Helen laughed. "No book can give us all the answers. I think we just have to face the fact that we have a very bright, very headstrong daughter, and for the life of me I cannot figure where she would have gotten those personality traits." Helen smirked. "The key is going to be presenting a united front. This is just the start, give her a few more years and she we be playing us off against each other like a professional."

Nikola walked over and retrieved his now sleeping daughter off her mother's lap and cuddled her close. "Oh Helen what have we let ourselves in for?"

Helen smiled and stood dropping a kiss on her beautiful daughters head and wrapping her arms around Nikolas waist.

"A whole world of trouble – exciting isn't it?" She grinned.


	2. Busted!

**I wasn't going to write any more until after my little boy had his tonsils out tomorrow, but you know how it is, the muse goes where the muse goes and this is where she went. Would love to hear what you think of it.**

Helen exited the bathroom to see her husband already in bed with a predatory gleam in his eye, a gleam Helen felt her body respond to immediately.

"I have a headache." She said in the most serious tone she could muster.

Nikola laughed. "Do not, you liar."

Helen climbed into bed and immediately moved into Nikola's comforting embrace. Sometimes she wondered how she had lived so long without his constant presence in her life. They had been together for two and a half years and in some ways their relationship was still so new and exciting and in other ways they were so comfortable with each other it was like they had been together forever.

"So I've been thinking."

"Always a dangerous pastime for you my dear." Helen playfully slapped him. "Ohhh spousal abuse, how very kinky."

"Nikola! I'm serious!"

"Oh okay." Nikola said dramatically. "We aren't going to get to the fun stuff until you tell me what you've been thinking, are we?"

"Not a chance." Helen smiled at him and angled herself so she could see his face. She needed to be able to see his immediate reaction.

"Fine. What have you been conjuring up in that stimulating mind of yours?"

"I think we should have another baby." And there it was. The look of sheer terror she had been anticipating. "Before you say no, just hear me out." She begged before he shut the idea down completely.

"Okay". He said begrudgingly, knowing there was very little she could say that would change his mind from a resounding 'no way'. It wasn't that he didn't adore Ruby, because he did, far more than he ever dreamed possible but he never imagined how time consuming and exhausting a small child could be. And he wasn't going to even entertain the thought of having another little person running around who could get into as much mischief as his daughter. No. There was no way they were having another child and Helen could make all the arguments she wanted but he wouldn't be backing down, he would almost do anything for her, but on this issue, he was going to stand firm.

"Remember back to how you felt when Ruby was first born? She wasn't even a week old and you lay in bed with me and wanted to make another one just like her?"

Nikola nodded and couldn't help the grin on his face, Helen had been right he had fallen in love at first sight. "Yes, and you informed me that it would be at least six week before we could resume any baby making activities, by which time I had come to my senses and seen how much time that adorable little person took up. I am a selfish man Helen, I like having your undivided attention at times".

"She needs a sibling Nikola." Helen said simply.

"And this has nothing to do with your centuries old desire to have a big family?" Nikola asked knowingly.

"I won't deny the fact that I love being a mother. I adored being a mother to Ashley but with Ruby it is so different. I have more time to be with her and I have you to share all her wonderful moments with, with Ashley I was still growing the network and raising her by myself, I had to do everything. As scary as it sounds, I feel like I actually can have it all and have found the perfect balance."

"It's a lovely sentiment Helen but you forget I came from a big family – I remember how little time our parents had for us. I want Ruby to have everything we can give her and still have time and energy left for us".

"Nikola, this is completely different. You grew up in a tiny Serbian village and your parents lost one of their children at a very young age, which is a tragedy they probably never recovered from."

"Helen," Nikola sighed. "We are fine, great even, why rock the boat?"

"In the Sanctuary, the world revolves around Ruby. All she has to do is pout and five people come running to see what's wrong. There isn't one person, or abnormal, who lives here that she hasn't got wrapped around her little finger. She needs to learn that the world doesn't revolve around her." Helen tried to explain.

"She's adorable and she's two – I can't see how being the centre of attention is such a bad thing, after all she is a Tesla and we like to be the centre of attention and have people fawning over us." Nikola grinned.

Helen knew she was fighting a losing battle. Perhaps she had to approach this from a different direction. She leaned in and kissed her husband passionately. Nikola responded, thinking the discussion had ended and was more than happy a few minutes later, when a delightfully naked Helen, rolled them so she was straddling him and moaning with pleasure.

Just as Nikola sat up slightly so he could take a favourite part of his wife's anatomy in his mouth he heard a small sound. Helen must have heard it to because they both turned at the same time and bumped their heads.

"Mummy why you sitting on daddy, you is hurting him – I heared him."

Helen very nearly burst out laughing until she saw the blush of utter embarrassment on Nikolas face. She moved off her blushing husband and retrieved her satin negligee and put it back on. Meanwhile Nikola was fumbling with his discarded boxers.

"Ummmm Ruby sweetheart – come here." Ruby climbed up into her parents' bed, one of her favourite places to be. "That was just Mummy and daddy's special way of showing each other how much we love one another."

Ruby looked confused. "But you were sitting on daddy."

It was Nikolas turn to laugh. "Yes mummy you were sitting on me, why exactly were you doing that?"

Helen shot Nikola a look that told him she would get revenge. "Well for some reason daddy really likes it when I do that and I was trying to convince him that you needed a little brother or a sister." Helen smirked at him.

Ruby didn't understand most of what her mother had just said and she was smiling kind of funny at daddy but she had said two of the most wonderful words in Ruby's ever expanding vocabulary, 'brother' and 'sister'.

"When? When? When? When can I have a baby brother or sister?"

"You play dirty Mrs Tesla". Nikola growled. Helen smiled at her daughter and ignored the fact that Nikola had called her Mrs Tesla something her only did when he wanted to rile her.

"How about you go back to bed and daddy and I will talk about it some more."

As much as Ruby hated getting out of her parents bed, she really, really wanted a brother or sister and would do just about anything to have one, so she kissed her parents and obediently went back to her own room next door.

As Ruby toddled out the door, it suddenly struck Nikola that Helen had raised the discussion of a sibling in front of their daughter and all the pieces fell into place. He turned to her accusingly. "You're pregnant aren't you?"

Helen did have the good grace to look a bit sheepish. "Yes". She really didn't know what his reaction would be.

"And tonight was….?"

"A way to get you on board with the idea." She said quietly.

"And Ruby?" He asked not sure he was comfortable with the idea of Helen manipulating their daughter like this.

"Completely unplanned, I promise." She said sincerely.

Nikola sighed. "So a sibling….a done deal then?"

"I'm afraid so. Vampiric super sperm, remember?" Nikola smiled and Helen started to relax.

"Just promise me that if you get it into your head that you want to add to our family again you will at least try and convince me _before _you get pregnant?"

"I promise, when I am ready to have another one you will be the first to know."


	3. Preschool Days

**As usual not mine not making any money and completely unbeta'd so all mistakes belong to me and sadly Nikola and his crazy hair don't.**

**Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews and for the couple that weren't signed in ones sorry I can't get back to you personally to answer your questions but I can tell you I probably won't be going into detail with the birth in this story (although I never say never) because I feel like I did that at the end of A Long and Winding Road (if you want to see how I think Nikola would cope with childbirth take a look at the second last chapter of that story).**

**Anyway I deliver this fluffy nonsense to you as a way of killing time in hospital while my four year old recovers from a tonsilectomy.**

"Nikola?" Helen entered her husband's lab, her massive stomach preceding her by at least ten inches.

Nikola looked up from his work as soon as soon as he heard his wife's voice. "Are you sure you haven't got triplets in there? It seems every time I turn around you are bigger."

"Nikola, stop. You'll make me swoon with all your romantic compliments." Helen scoffed, used to her husband's less than tactful comments. Helen waddled over and as gracefully as a woman who was six months pregnant could, sat down on the lounge. "To make up for insulting me, and the size of your progeny, you can go and pick Ruby up from pre-school."

They had decided not long after Helen found out she was pregnant that Ruby should attend a pre-school to help her learn to socialise with other children and prepare her for school. Not that she needed a lot of preparing, Ruby was a very intelligent child. She could already speak three languages and Nikola quite often allowed her to tinker with things in his lab.

"No. Don't make me go there. Please, I'll do anything, rub your feet, take you out to dinner, shower you in compliments for the rest of our considerably long lives….anything." Nikola was desperate never to have to go back to that place. For him, Ruby's pre-school resembled a form hellish torture.

"Nikola, you know as well as I do that Ruby loves it when you pick her up."

Nikola sighed. "I know she does. And you know I will do almost anything for the two of you, just don't make me go back there…..please."

"I know they put paint on your favourite Armani suit and I know you don't like the chaos and noise but it is only picking her up I'm not asking you to spend the day there." Helen knew it was very low down the list of things Nikola liked to do but he had never almost begged her not to have to do it before – something was definitely up.

Nikola looked a bit sheepish. "I can't believe I am going to say this, but I can handle the mess and the chaos and the noise, and with our little madam creating it on a daily basis, I am beginning to cope with all of that far better than I ever thought possible. It's the mother's Helen! I can't bear the mothers!"

Helen tried so hard not to laugh but she just couldn't keep it in. The thought of her immortal, vampire husband being scared of a few mothers was too amusing not to give reign to her laughter.

"And what exactly is it that has you so scared of a bunch of three years olds mothers?" Helen didn't even bother to try and hide her amusement from him.

Nikola turned and began to pack up his work for the day. "Laugh if you want my darling spouse, perhaps I should take them up on their offers of a little extra-marital recreation."

Helen became serious and a look of pure, jealous rage crossed her face. "They didn't."

"Oh I assure you they did." Nikola smiled, it was almost worth putting up with those horrendous women just to see the look on Helen's face, he liked the idea of his wife being jealous and he found it oddly arrousing. "One even went as far as slipping me her house key and informing me of the nights her ex-husband had custody." Nikola smirked. "It turns out, my darling wife, that I am considered quite the catch among the single mother set."

Helen was livid. "And what exactly was your response?" Helen asked suspiciously. She knew Nikola would always be faithful to her, but she also knew that at times he could play quite the gentleman and she wanted to be sure that these women, who thought it was acceptable to proposition her husband, knew that they didn't stand a chance.

"I naturally informed them that I was so horrendously hen pecked that if the Mrs got even a hint of me playing around, she would spay and neuter me before I even had a chance try and make up an excuse."

Helen hung her head, she wanted to hold on to the anger but it seemed the embarrassment was the emotion that was going to win out. She would never be able to face these women again, no wonder she had had some strange looks from some of the mothers in the last few weeks. There were times when she could cheerfully strangle her insufferable husband and this was definitely one of them.

"Well the only solution is for us both to go and pick up Ruby and you can do everything in your power to fix this. I do not want the reputation of being some dominating wife and you some poor down trodden husband. Ruby will be attending school with these children, I am not going to suffer through the next fifteen years of sideways glances and smirks."

"But you know I so love it when you go all dominatrix on me." Nikola grinned cheekily.

"Fix it Nikola!"

"Oh fine, let's go." Nikola said with his usual flair for the dramatic.

Twenty minutes later they walked into the pre-school hand in hand. Several of the mothers saw them and noticed the hand holding and the fact that Nikola moved his hand to support Helen's back as they climbed the couple of stairs that lead to the outdoor play area where they waited to pick up the children.

Behind the fence they could see their daughter in a heated discussion with a little boy. They both grinned at the sight of their daughter standing up to the boy who was clearly a head taller than her. Just as they were planning to move closer so they could hear the conversation the children's voices became louder and more heated so all the parents could hear.

"My dad could sooooo take your dad." The little boy declared. A hush fell over the parents as they smiled and waited to hear what the petite, adorable little girl's response would be.

Ruby cocked her head to the side as if considering this statement. Nikola couldn't help but think how much she looked like her mother when she did that.

"You may be right," Ruby declared and Nikola felt a bit indignant, "But my _mum_ could totally kick your dad's ass." Helen looked at her daughter mortified and Nikola burst out laughing.

"Sorry love, but I think your reputation just took a nosedive."


	4. A Tesla By Any Other Name

**Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed this story, the response has overwhelmed me. I had no intention of updating this nearly as often as I have but all your lovely words have really inspired me. That being said, I am feeling the pressure to make each new chapter at least as good as the last, if not better and I'm afraid I may let you down with this one. Let me know what you think.**

"Well that was a harrowing few hours." Nikola said as he cradled his newborn daughter.

"Yes I'm sure it was particularly difficult and painful for you." Helen scoffed. In reality it had been a far longer and more difficult birth than either of her other children had been, and although she was exhausted, but she was still running on adrenaline.

"I don't think you appreciate how hard it is for me to see you in pain, Helen." Nikola said in that wounded little boy voice of his that he only every used when he honestly felt he was being misunderstood.

Helen smiled at him. "I know." She held out her arms for her whimpering daughter. Nikola delicately transferred her. "She was worth it though, wasn't she?" Occasionally Helen still had a few doubts about how Nikola felt about being a parent, after all, it wasn't like she had given him any choice with either of the girls. But then again, pragmatist that she was, if she had given Nikola any say in the matter they wouldn't have any children at all.

Nikola looked at Helen as she began nursing their new daughter, with the same wonder he had on his face when she had Ruby. "It was. She is bellisimo!" He said with a dramatic flourish and they both looked at each other and smiled knowingly.

"Perfect". They said in unison.

Nikola moved to the door, to allow all the other 'children' in to see the new Sanctuary addition. He immediately picked up Ruby so she could have the best position to see her much longed for sister.

Helen smiled radiantly from the bed as she detached her sleeping daughter. "Hello everyone, Nikola and I would like to introduce you to Bella."

Rather than the rounds of congratulations they were expecting Nikola and Helen were met with silence. They looked at each other and shrugged, neither knowing what the hell was going on. Neither expected the laughter that broke out though.

"Ha ha Doc. You really had us going there for a minute." Henry finally managed to get out.

"Yeah you guys should have been actors – I don't know how you did that with a straight face." Kate laughed.

It was Will who took in the bewildered looks on the new parents faces and realised the name hadn't been some kind of joke. "Ahhh guys." He tried. "Guys!" He said a bit more forcefully to break through the banter Henry and Kate had fallen into. "I think they were serious."

Henry and Kate stopped immediately and looked at their boss and her Vampire husband and realised Will was right.

"You seriously want to call your baby vampire Bella?" Kate asked incredulously.

"What is wrong with the name Bella? It means beautiful and we think it suits her perfectly." Helen reasoned.

On hearing what her new sisters name meant Ruby grasped her fathers' cheeks in her pudgy little hands and turned his head to face her. "Why didn't you call me Bella, aren't I beautiful?"

Nikola may not know a great deal about being a father, but he did know how important it was for all children to feel they were loved equally by their parents, something he had never felt from his own parents. "You were called Ruby because _you_ are our special treasure." This seemed to make the little girl happy and Nikola looked over to Helen who gave him a wink – he had handled it perfectly.

"Ah guys, not to be a Debbie Downer here, but have either of you ever heard of 'Twilight'…books…movies… megabucks?" Kate asked.

Nikola scoffed. "Nothing written this century is worth wasting my time on and no I haven't been to the movies, I seem to have found far more pleasurable ways to spend my evenings in the last few years." He smirked at his wife.

"You are a snob Nikola Tesla." Helen said choosing to ignore her husband's innuendo and turning to the others in the room. "Someone please explain why you all think our daughters name is such a huge source of amusement."

"Main character in the blockbuster book and movie series is called Bella." Henry explained.

"So….." Nikola drawled still not seeing the point of this conversation. He sighed. Every relationship came with baggage and this was one of the many times he wished Helen had not come with a bunch of infuriating 'children'.

"Soooooo". Will drawled back in a perfect mimic of the sarcastic vampire. "The entire series was about vampires."

No, no, no, no, no!" Nikola began pacing with Ruby still in his arms. He turned to Helen. "There is no way our daughters' name is in any way going to be associated with some pathetic, moneymaking, drivel that no doubt defiles our great race. Irony be damned!" He waved his hand dramatically between himself and his daughters.

"But I love the name." Helen said, knowing she was probably going to have to give in on this one. When it came to Nikola and his vampire race – well, the only thing he felt more passionately about was her, and even then it would be a close call.

"Then we are just going to have to come up with something else you love as much." Nikola stated firmly.

"She could be your treasure too daddy, you could call her diamond or emerald. Oh, I know let's call her sapphire because her eyes are blue." Ruby said with all the passion a three and a half year old could muster.

"They are all excellent suggestions, my beautiful girl, but I think seeing as I am refusing to let mummy have the name she wants, how about we let her choose? Hmmmm." He rubbed noses with his daughter affectionately.

Everyone in the room turned and looked at Helen expectantly. "So no pressure then?" She smiled half-heartedly.

"What about calling her 'beautiful' in another language?" Ruby piped up. Helen brightened at her daughter's suggestion.

"You are a clever girl!" Helen said.

"Future genius – remember?" Helen turned to look at her husband, asking with her eyes where their daughter had learned such a phrase. Nikola merely grinned and shrugged.

"Kids say the darndest things." He said it in such an offhand way that Helen knew exactly where her daughter had learnt it.

"Beautiful in Serbian is lep". Ruby informed them knowingly.

"It's smuk in Danish." Will grinned

"Piekny, krasny and vakker in Polish Czech and Norwegian respectively" said Nikola

"Well we are certainly not naming her any of those." Helen said firmly. "I still like Bella, would Isabella be considered appropriate by all those who feel strongly about naming my child after a fictional book character?"

Will, Henry, Kate and even the big guy nodded. Helen looked to Nikola who was smiling. "Isabella it is. Ruby, please meet your baby sister Isabella." Nikola moved them closer to Helen and the baby,

"Hi Izzy." Ruby exclaimed and Helen rolled her eyes, she just knew that was the name that was going to stick.


	5. Daddy's Little Girl

**Here is some fluffy nonsense because it rained and baseball was cancelled so I had some time on my hands before basketball and soccer registration...Anyway I seem to have fallen in love with little Ruby so here is another offering with her featuring quite heavily.**

Helen had been away from her husband and girls for nearly a week, and as far as she was concerned, that was seven days too long. She was dirty and tired after trekking through the wilds of Nepal with Will, but she couldn't wait to see the girls. She opened the door to the girls room and was greeted with a sight ever mother dreads – complete and utter chaos.

There were pieces of coloured paper everywhere, textas without lids all over the floor and some interesting 'artwork' on the walls. Ruby was twirling around the room making herself dizzy, dressed in a tutu and a pair of Helens shoes, singing at the top of her lungs and her little Isabella, who was barely able to sit by herself, was lying on her stomach screaming and throwing whatever she could get her chubby little hands on. There were plates of half eaten food on the table and a substance that Helen couldn't identify dripping from the ceiling.

Helen walked in and scooped up the screaming baby, whose tears dried immediately once she was in her mothers' comforting arms. The minute the screaming stopped Ruby, no longer feeling the need to sing louder than the screaming, stopped as well.

"Mummy!" The four year old yelled excitedly as soon as she saw her mother. It was the longest mother and daughter had ever been apart. "I am so glad you are home!" Ruby hugged her mother as Helen kneeled down and extended her free arm to embrace her.

Helen's eyes moved around the room. "Yes, it looks like I got home not a moment too soon."

Ruby's eyes followed her mothers. "Oh No. Daddy is gonna be in soooooo much trouble isn't he?"

"Oh most definitely." Helen said firmly.

Nikola unfortunately chose that moment to re-enter the girls bedroom and didn't see his wife at first. "Here we go girls, chocolate cake and milk. For heavens sake don't tell your mother what we have been up to while she was away otherwise I will …..."

"You will what Nikola?" Helen questioned lifting one eyebrow, as she made her presence in the room known. Nikola brightened at the sight of his wife and then looked down at the tray laden with cake and milk.

"I'm in soooooo much trouble aren't I?" Nikola sounded just like Ruby had a few minutes earlier.

Helen sighed, she was too exhausted and too happy to be home to spend her first precious minutes berating her husband and older daughter for their complete disregard for the rules. "Here's what I am going to do." Helen addressed the two main culprits. "Isabella and I are going to go and have a bath together and when I feel clean and relaxed I am going to come back in here and start the evening again." Nikola and Ruby breathed a sigh of relief at their reprieve, both thinking they could get the big guy up here and he would do most of the hard work.

As Helen exited the room, with a happy Isabella in her arms, she turned. "By the way I'll know if you two coerce my old friend into helping you."

"Damn" father and daughter said in unison.

::::::

Helen sank into the enormous tub in her ensuite bathroom. The tub had been a pure luxury item she had added when building the new sanctuary and one she hadn't regretted for a moment. In fact she had her suspicions that Isabella may have even been conceived in the tub. It had been the sight of many family bubble battles when the four of them had spent time together. But tonight she and Isabella were going to just enjoy soaking together and maybe just clap a few of the bubbles.

An hour later, a much more relaxed, and certainly better smelling, Helen walked into a much cleaner bedroom. The paper and textas had been put away and Ruby was in her pyjamas, sitting on her bed, reading a book and looking like an angel. Helen knew better.

"Where's daddy?" Helen asked as she moved to the change table and started dressing the baby for bed.

"Oh he just had to go downstairs." Ruby said with just enough innocence to put all Helen's senses on alert.

"Why?" Helen pressed.

"Ummmm he didn't really say." The little minx hedged. She was pure Nikola.

"So did Kate and Henry help with the clean up?" Helen knew from her daughters face that she got it right with her first guess. Helen knew Ruby would never lie to her, but she had her fathers mastery of twisting the truth to suit her own ends. Helen could see Ruby trying to work out a way to tell the truth without getting her adored father into trouble.

"Daddy and I did most of the hard work. Kate and Henry _wanted_ to help. And when you think about it, Izzy is the one who made most of the mess so it really wasn't fair that daddy and I had been left to clean up after her."

"They wanted to help did they? Daddy didn't perhaps offer them something to help?"

"He might have offered some kind of financial reward for their generosity." Ruby said in all seriousness. Helen fought to contain her laughter. "It is the way the world economy works." Ruby continued.

Nikola strode in the room and walked straight up to his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Oh I have missed you." He whispered in her ear. "And as soon as the offspring are tucked up in bed I plan to show you how much."

"Nikola! Really. You paid my staff to help you clean the girls room." Helen accused as she turned in his embrace.

Nikola looked over at his daughter who just shrugged her shoulders and said "Sorry daddy, she's good."

"Yes I am, and I suggest you two remember that next time you two decide to get up to no good. Clearly I am not going to be able to go away for extended periods of time in the future."

Nikola's grin broadened. "Then I would say our plan worked rather well, wouldn't you Ruby?"

Ruby nodded enthusiastically.


	6. Arguements and Additions

**I just can't leave Ruby alone - she cracks me up. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews for all this fluffy nonsense - keep 'em coming and I will keep writing - all your lovely words inspire me.**

"But I don't wanna go!" Ruby announced in the way only a petulant, headstrong five year old child can.

They were sitting together having dinner as a family, something Helen liked to do as much as possible. Isabella was in her high chair happily feeding herself and smiling happily as she always did when she had all her family around her. Ruby, however, was gearing up for an argument with her parents that she didn't realise she had no chance of winning.

"That's 'I don't _want_ to go' ". Helen corrected.

"Exactly! So don't make me. I wanna stay here with you and daddy and Izzy and Biggie."

"You are going – if for no other reason than to learn that 'wanna' is not considered a word in the English language." Helen argued.

"Maybe…" Nikola tried to intervene. Helen knew he was wavering. This argument had been going on ever since they told Ruby that she would be starting school after the summer break.

"No." Helen said firmly. Nikola had made a good case for home schooling their incredibly intelligent daughter but she had made an equally compelling case for sending her to the local school. The clincher had been when Helen argued that Ruby needed to know how to fit into regular society, that she may not always want to make her home the sanctuary.

"Ruby Patricia Magnus-Tesla!" Helen paused after saying the child's full name. "That is quite a mouthful isn't it?" Helen looked across the dining table to her husband who merely shrugged.

"You named her." He grinned.

"I believe we both did, however, perhaps for school we could drop the Magnus?"

"Really?" Father and daughter questioned, both knowing how attached Helen was to her name.

"Yes really, I think Ruby Tesla sounds quite nice actually."

"So does that mean you are finally prepared to relent and be known as Helen Tesla?" Nikola asked hopefully. Not that he really cared that much but his ordered mind liked the idea of his whole family having the same last name.

Helen laughed. "Not a chance."

"Can we please get back on topic people?" Ruby demanded.

"Ruby," Helen said as patiently as she could. "I'm sorry, I know you don't like the idea of school but I think if you give it a chance you might find you really enjoy yourself."

"All your friends from pre-school will be there." Nikola tried.

"I don't have friends at pre-school, I tolerate them, none of them are my intellectual equal."

Helen looked over at Nikola wondering where her daughter was getting this. Oh, who was she kidding she knew exactly where her daughter was getting it.

"Nikola!" Helen was furious.

"I swear it wasn't me." He promised sincerely. "Ruby Tesla, you are beginning to sound like an arrogant brat and I will not have it. Yes, you are very clever but that doesn't mean the other children aren't equally as clever in other ways." Nikola tried, knowing it was unlikely there was any child at any pre-school who was as smart as his daughter.

"Fine." Ruby sighed dramatically, so much like her father that Helen felt like she was looking at a mini Nikola. "If you really think I should go daddy, I will try it for a few weeks."

Helen smirked. "Thank you Ruby, your father and I both appreciate your willingness to be flexible on this matter."

Nikola almost burst out laughing at his wife's tone and had to cover it under a cough.

::::::::

Later that night as they lay in bed Helen turned to her husband. "For a minute there I wasn't sure we were going to be able to convince her."

"I still don't know if it is the right decision for her. I don't think you realise how massively intelligent she is. As much as it pains me to say it I think she is going to be more intelligent than me. And you know I don't like admit that anyone could be more intelligent than me."

Helen laughed. "Yes I can imagine what a blow to your ego that must be. But we are so isolated here, she needs to know of the world outside the Sanctuary."

"I know, I know." Nikola sighed. "Let's just hope we don't have the same problem with Izzy. It's a good thing we stopped at two, these girls could actually be the death of me and succeed where all your bullets never could my love."

Helen smiled thinking of her easy going younger daughter. "I think we both know that Isabella is the polar opposite of Ruby when it comes to personality, which is probably a good thing, I don't think the world is quite ready for two Ruby's". As to the rest of Nikolas comment about stopping at two, perhaps she should let him in on her plans a little bit later.

"Hmmmmm". While she had been talking Nikola had very skilfully divested her of her clothing and was now lying on top of her leaving little doubt in her mind as to where this night was headed. Nikola nibbled at her neck in that place her knew drove her wild.

A few minutes later, when they were as close as two people could be, Helen decided it was the perfect time to raise the issue of more children.

"Do you remember when I told you I was pregnant with Isabella?" Helen panted.

Nikola looked at her terrified that she was about to tell him she was pregnant again.

"Don't look so worried." Helens voice was closer to normal, as Nikola had slowed down his movements. "I promised you would be the first to know if I wanted another baby." Nikola smiled and relaxed as his passion for his wife returned and his movements sped up once more.

"I. Want. Another. Baby." Helen panted just as Nikola collapsed on her and rolled them to their sides.

"Oh god. Super sperm." Nikola groaned when he recovered.

Helen grinned at him and cupped hid cheek gently with her hand. "I'm hoping so".

"Promise me, promise me this is the last." Nikola begged.

"I promise this is the last….this century." Helen leaned in and kissed him before he had a chance to respond.


	7. Conditions

**This is for Tasha who told me being bone lazy and tired were not valid excuses for not writing and instructed me I had to post something or else. Not sure what the or else is considering she is on the other side of the pond freezing her vital bits off but I thought it best not to incur her wrath just in case she has superhuman powers or something…**

**Sorry no Ruby in this one, it's pure Teslen baby making fluff – don't say I didn't warn you.**

Helen was standing in the bathroom looking down at the stick in her hand when Nikola came up behind her and slid his arms around her waist and kissed her neck.

"I assume I'm not going to be able to do this for much longer?" He sighed resignedly, as he looked up at his wife's reflection in the mirror.

"Ah no. Apparently you should be good for a while longer." Nikola looked at his wife's reflection more closely and then down at the stick she was holding.

"Lord knows I am no expert on these matters, but I'm pretty sure there are supposed to be two pink lines."

Helen turned, making sure not to leave Nikolas embrace. "Well, if I were actually pregnant then yes, there would be two lines. However, I'm apparently not pregnant, hence the one line."

Nikola was looking for signs of disappointment in her face and her tone of voice but surprisingly they weren't there. No, Helen was just looking confused.

"So my super sperm failed us?"

"Apparently so." The confusion seemed to increase. "The thing is, I _feel_ pregnant."

"Wishful thinking mabe?"

"Possibly. I suppose it must be." She sighed.

"Hey, I am all for practicing until we hit the jackpot." Nikola grinned at her.

"Yes I'm sure you are up for the challenge." She smiled wickedly and wiggled her hips enticingly.

"Hmmmmm, as delightful as conceiving our next child on the bathroom sink would be." Nikola laughed and pulled her in for a kiss that left her in no doubt as to how much he really did like that idea, despite his teasing. "This extra time means I can tell you about a few conditions I have if you want to keep increasing the size of our family."

Helen pulled away. She would have moved right out of his embrace but Nikola held her firmly. "Conditions, Nikola?" She said in that wary tone of voice she only used when he had done something really wrong.

"Relax, Helen. I'm sure you can learn to live with them." He guided them to the lounge in the sitting area or their massive bedroom.

"Spill it Nikola." He knew he was in deep trouble now. Maybe he should have broached this subject differently.

"If you are serious about another baby…"

"I am." She interrupted leaving him in no doubt that even though she was seriously pissed with him at the moment, he wasn't going to be sleeping on the couch any time in the near future.

"As I was saying….if we are seriously doing this, I want to get a nanny."

"Nikola you are far too old for a nanny." She deliberately misunderstood and smiled at him.

"Very funny. I believe I play a fairly fundamental role in this latest project of yours, if you want my full co-operation I suggest you hear me out old woman."

"Fine. I'm listening. And we will discuss the old woman comment later." She promised.

"I think we should employ a nanny for the offspring. Between this place and the kids I come a very poor third in your life at the moment." He knew she was about to interrupt and deny his claims, so he continued before she had a chance to speak. "And I don't begrudge you your children or your work but I once told you I am selfish, that hasn't changed, I want a little piece of you that is just for me."

"Nikola" Helen said softly and cupped his cheek with her hand. "When we close that door at night I am all yours, you know that."

Nikolas tone matched hers. "I'm not just talking about sex, as delightful as that is." He grinned at her. "But while I adore that delicious body of yours, I adore your mind as well."

"Ah Nikola, that is one of the loveliest things you have ever said to me."

"I want one lunch and one dinner, minimum, each week. Just the two of us."

Helen smiled. "I think that can be arranged. But we certainly don't need a nanny to do that. Any number of people would be happy to look after the girls for us."

Nikola put a finger up to Helen's lips. "As usual, you are agreeing to something before I finish laying out my plans. Really Helen, I thought you would have learnt by now."

"Continue." Helen said knowing he was probably right.

"Since we had Ruby and Izzy, who you know I adore more than I ever would have thought possible, the only things I have worked on are communication devices and a long range baby monitor that are still operational despite an EM pulse."

Helen lifted an eye brow at him.

"Yes, yes" He waved his hand theatrically. "I know I kept blowing the power and that's why you made me do them, but at the moment Ruby is making greater scientific advancements than I am. I love the girls but I need more time to focus on my work."

Helen thought about the last few years. While they had certainly shared the responsibility of parenting, if there had been any urgent sanctuary business she had dropped everything to deal with it and Nikola had been there to pick up the slack. Every time. Without complaint.

"Yes. Yes we can get a nanny, as long as it is someone we both agree on."

"That's it? Yes? No more arguments?"

"No. No more arguments. You are right your work is as important as mine, if not more so, and my desire for a large family has forced you to neglect that. I'm sorry." She said sincerely.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. You know me, I never do anything I don't want to, but lately I have all these ideas and theories and no time to do anything about them."

Helen laughed. "So you had better get me pregnant before I lose you to your lab forever?"

Nikola laughed with her. "Have no fear my love, I have discovered that sleeping with you every night far surpasses all of my previous work combined." Nikola stood and lifted her and unceremoniously dropped her on the bed. "Let's get to work on that baby woman."

"Oh Nikola, you have such a way with words." She teased as she undid the buttons on his shirt.

"Who would have thought, after all those years of trying to resurrect my race, it would actually be _you_ who is so insistent on repopulating the earth with little vampires."


	8. Instinct

**Okay, this is a REALLY short one because the last chapter didn't end how it was supposed to and it has been bugging me all morning - think of it as a second part to that one.**

Helen looked at the stick in her hand again – one line. She threw it against the wall in a fit of uncharacteristic temper. On hearing the noise Nikola entered the bathroom.

"I take it the test was negative?" He asked, knowing the answer just by looking at his wife's face.

"Come on." She said and grabbed his hand.

"Ah sure." He said willingly being dragged to wherever Helen wanted to go. "Just remember we have the interview with the nanny in an hour."

"I don't care about the bloody nanny at the moment. I have done a pregnancy test every week for the last month and every one of them has been negative but I _know_ I'm pregnant.".

Nikola stopped walking which meant Helen, who was still holding his hand, stopped abruptly. "Don't take this the wrong way, because you know I am always happy to oblige in the baby making department, but don't you think you might be starting to obsess about this…..just a little bit."

"No." Helen said succinctly. She dropped Nikolas hand and kept walking.

"Helen! Stop. Wait!" Nikola ran to catch up to her and moved in front of her to place his hands on her shoulders to force her to not walk away from him again.

"Nikola. I want to do a blood test. Clearly those home ones are faulty."

"Helen. Just listen to me." He begged calmly. "You got pregnant with Ruby and Izzy so easily, this one is just taking a bit more time."

"You don't understand, this isn't wishful thinking, I know in my heart I'm pregnant. Please just let me do the blood test, okay?"

"Fine c'mon then." Nikola humoured her and took her hand as they continued to her lab. When this test came back negative too, which he was sure it would, he was knew Helen was going to be very upset and he wanted to make sure he was there to comfort her and make sure none of the annoying 'children' interrupted her until she regained her composure.

::::

Thirty minutes later Helen smiled up at her husband. "Told you so."

Nikola nibbled at his wife's neck as he hugged her. "For once, I am more than happy to hear that."

Helen moved about the lab setting up the ultrasound equipment. "Let's see if I was right all along?"

Less than ten minutes later as Helen moved the transducer around her stomach and was looking at the monitor intensely she got a slight frown on her face. Nikola immediately began to worry.

"What? What's wrong?" He asked beginning to get genuinely worried.

Helen grasped his hand with her free one. "Nothing. Nothing is wrong. It just seems your vampiric super sperm worked remarkably well this time."

Nikola breathed a sigh of relief. "So you were right, you have been pregnant all along?"

"It appears so. I knew my instincts weren't that far off."

"So why the frown?"

"It appears that we are in for double the fun."

"Helen! English please!" Nikola demanded.

She grinned up at him. "Twins." She pointed at the monitor.


	9. Dance with Me

**Some more Ruby love (for those that like her) mixed in with a whole lot of Teslen goodness. **

"I got the moves like daddy, I got the moves like daddy, I got the moo..ooo…oves like daddy." Helen watched, with Isabella perched on her hip, as Ruby sang and danced around her office. By the time Ruby got to the second chorus Helen could no longer contain her laugher and Isabella was squirming to get down and join in the dancing with her sister.

Ruby stopped dead when she heard her mother. This could go either way the little girl thought, her mother was either going to get really mad because she wasn't supposed to listen to iTunes on her mother's laptop or, and this was she what she was hoping for, that her awesome cuteness would melt her mother's heart and she would score a huge cuddle.

"Ruby Tesla I thought we had come to an understanding about my computer?" Helen smiled to let Ruby know she wasn't in too much trouble. Ruby breathed a sigh of relief – thank heavens for awesome cuteness.

"We did mummy but you didn't say I couldn't listen to music." Helen pulled Ruby in for a cuddle.

"Semantics my child. Who on earth taught you the incorrect words to that song anyway?"

"Daddy!" They said in unison and laughed. Isabella laughed too because, at just over two, she was not going to be left out of the fun.

"Izzy dance, Izzy dance." The little girl demanded.

"Just guessing, but I think Izzy wants to dance too mummy." Ruby rolled her eyes, an exact mimic of the way her father did.

Helen sighed knowing she was defeated. "Fine. Put the music back on."

That was how Nikola found them ten minutes later, his three favourite girls dancing around Helens office in their bare feet. He drank in the sight for a moment reflecting on how much his life had changed in the last five years, and how terrified he had been of those changes at the time, and now he wouldn't have is life any other way.

"Hello my three dancing nymphs." Helen turned towards him and gave him the most beautiful smile he had ever seen and continued dancing with Isabella. Ruby however, stopped dancing the minute she heard her beloved fathers voice and launched herself at him.

"Ruby apparently has the moves like daddy." Helen grinned. "I'd like to see evidence of these moves sometime Tesla."

Nikola moved closer to his wife with Ruby still hanging from his neck. "I think we have plenty of tangible evidence of my moves Mrs Tesla."

"Ohhh don't call her that daddy, you know she hates it when you call her that. And what tangible evidence do you have?"

"I have you my little treasure and your sister and your new siblings when they arrive."

Helen glared at him and he instantly knew he had said the wrong thing.

"What new siblings?" Ruby asked in exactly the same tone of voice Helen used when she didn't like something he had done.

"Ummmm"

"You dropped us in it Jagger, you can get yourself out of it."

Nikola moved so he could sit down with Ruby on his lap while Helen moved to turn off the music. They hadn't really talked about when they were going to tell Ruby about the twins. Isabella was too young to understand but Ruby was far too bright not to sense something was going on.

"Mummy is going to have another baby, actually two babies, twins."

"No." Ruby announced.

Helen smirked. "I'm sorry Ruby but it actually isn't a decision you get a say in."

"Well I should! Don't you two realise what an inconvenience this is for me! I tolerated Izzy when she came along because I was too young to know what a pest she would turn into but I'm five now and a whole lot smarter. Why on earth do you want more kids anyway? Daddy is always saying what a handful we are."

Helen glared at her husband and he knew he had to say something brilliant if he wanted to avoid sleeping on the couch. "We wanted more because you and Izzy turned out so well that we wanted more perfect little babies." He watched as the look on Helens face softened and knew he had made a good save.

"Well I can understand why you would want more like me, but Izzy is a mess." They all looked over at poor little Isabella who was currently drawing on herself with one of the markers Helen kept in her office for the girls to draw with.

Helen moved over to Isabella and gently removed the marker from her grasp and replaced it with a carrot stick she kept on her desk for just such moments. "Maybe I will have boys this time – brothers instead of more sisters." Helen said hopefully. Not that she cared either way but she hope Ruby might come around.

"Daddy doesn't want boys, he doesn't like them."

Helen looked up at her husband in shock. This was the first time she had ever heard of him having a preference for sons or daughters. The look on his face was comical in it confusion, he clearly had no idea where Ruby had come up with this idea. He shrugged his shoulders at Helen.

"What makes you think I don't want boys?" he asked.

"That man the other day at school." Now Nikola was really confused.

"What man?" He asked.

"Olivers dad."

"Ruby focus!" Helen and Nikola both said at the same time.

Ruby sighed indicating that she thought her parents were being a bit slow. "When daddy picked me up from school the other day, Oliver's dad said daddy was happy and daddy said he really liked girls."

"Happy?" Helen smirked.

Nikola looked a bit sheepish. "Gay" he said whispered to Helen.

"I gathered."

"Annnyyywaaay" Ruby said dramatically "I don't care if they are boy or girls, I am not sharing my room with anymore babies – Izzy is far more than I can deal with at the moment." Helen and Nikola both had to hide their laughter at their daughter's theatrics.

"Well Ruby, as you pointed out, you are now five and we have thrust this on you without any consultation, perhaps your own room might make the whole situation more palatable for you?" Nikola asked in the most serious tone he could muster.

"It might." Ruby answered shrewdly sensing this was a moment to be taken advantage of. "Perhaps if my own television were included in this deal…"

"Not a chance." Helen couldn't contain her laughter any longer.

"Fine! But don't expect me to be overjoyed about any of this!"

"Duly noted." Said Helen seriously.

"And now think it is time I showed your mother some of my famous moves. Ruby do you think you could put the music back on?"

"Sure thing daddy." Ruby bounced back over to her mothers computer.

Nikola grinned his boyish smile and pulled Helen into an embrace and began waltzing her around the office when Ruby turned the music back on. Helen threw her head back laughing at her husband's antics and before they knew it Ruby and Isabella had been lifted into their parent's arms to join in the dance.

"Sooooo not gonna be able to do this with four kids." Ruby said seriously and then laughed as he father tickled her.

"Nope probably not," said Nikola truthfully. "But I promise I will always find time to dance with you my beautiful Ruby, all you ever have to do is ask."


	10. Memories  or not

**Okay so after nine chapters I have finally found a plot for this story so it is no longer marked as complete and will continue on for a bit longer – for which you can either thank or hate Tasha2109 and Emmy1512.**

**You might need a bit of a timeline here to keep this one straight. Helen blew up the Sanctuary in 2011 and became pregnant with Ruby pretty much straight away and she is now 5 so this story is almost 6 years in the future so 2017. I am working on the fact that Helen blew the Sanctuary three years after she lost Ashley therefore Ashley died in 2008.**

Helen groaned and put her hand to her head. Surely a person couldn't actually survive a headache this bad? And why all the noise, bright lights and white? She sniffed, she knew that smell. She was in a hospital. Why though?

"Good to see you awake Dr Magnus." A young man in a white coat said. Surely he couldn't be a doctor, he didn't look any older than Ashley.

"What happened?" She asked, her voice surprisingly croaky.

"You were in a car accident. Someone ran a red light and sideswiped you. Don't worry though, you are fine – nothing more than a massive bump on the head. We've notified your family and they are on their way. We have to leave the monitor on the babies for a bit longer to be on the safe side, so why don't you get some rest." He patted her hand as she drifted off to sleep. Something he said was nagging at her as she drifted off she just couldn't seem to work out what it was.

When Helen woke again she was shocked to see Nikola sitting beside her bed.

"Nikola Tesla! What on earth are you doing here and where is my daughter?"

"Oh Helen. Thank God you are alright. You had us really worried there." He stood and kissed her and she recoiled from his actions. She hadn't seen Nikola for nearly sixty years and here he was kissing her…. and holding her hand.

"Where is Ashley? Where is my daughter?" Helen demanded.

Nikola looked at his wife in stunned silence. "Helen, what is the last thing you remember?" Nikola asked quietly, having a sinking feeling he was not going to like her answer.

Helen's head hurt painfully as she tried to think. "I remember….I remember sending Ashley to look at some new guns our supplier had just taken stock of. Oh God Ashley! She isn't hurt is she?" Helen began to panic.

"Shhhh calm down Helen, this isn't good for the …" Nikola stopped dead. He really needed to talk to her doctor and fast. "You should get some more rest, you don't want that huge egg on your head to take up permanent residence."

Fifteen minutes later a very worried Nikola re-entered Helen's room with Doogie Howser in tow.

'Dr Magnus your h…."

"Friend." Nikola interrupted.

"Right. Your friend here, seems to think you might be suffering some memory loss. Can you tell me what year it is?"

Helen was starting to get frustrated. "It's 2007." She was met with stunned silence.

"Well it looks like you might be spending a bit longer with us Dr Magnus." The doctor smiled kindly, but Helen wanted answers.

"Nikola what year is it?" Helen demanded.

Nikola turned to look at the doctor, who merely shrugged. Not very helpful. "It's 2017." He said quietly, suddenly realising the implications of her memory loss, not only did she not remember their life together, their family, but she was going to have to mourn the loss of her daughter and her home all over again."

"Oh dear Lord. I've lost ten years." It was at that moment she turned her head to the side and saw the foetal monitor. A frown crossed her beautiful face that Nikola would have found endearing under any other circumstances. As realisation filtered her mind she moved her hand to her to her rounded stomach and felt the unmistakable swell of pregnancy.

She was silent for some time desperately trying to remember. Surely something as momentous as this would trigger some kind on memory? Eventually she turned to the only person who might be able to give her the answers she so desperately needed.

"How? Who? When?"

"Let's go in reverse order, about five months ago, me and really Helen if you don't know the answer to the first one then they should revoke your medical licence." Nikola smiled at her trying to lighten the mood.

"So I'm five months pregnant?"

"With twins." Nikola added knowing if she looked at the monitor more closely she would be able to work it out for herself.

"Twins?" Helen said in a state of shock. "And they're yours?" She asked incredulously. Nikola nodded, not sure how she would take the news, after all, so much had changed in the last ten years between them.

"And we're…." Nikola lifted his left hand to show her his wedding ring and noticed her looking at her own left hand to see the matching one.

Helen was stunned. She had never in her 157 years felt anything romantic towards Nikola, in fact most of the time she found him arrogant and frustrating. To find out they were married and having twins was too much to deal with.

"How long have we been…" She motioned between their rings.

"Five years." Yet another bombshell for Helen to process.

"And it took me that long to convince you to have children?" Helen laughed knowing Nikola abhorred anything to do with children. When she thought about it, it was probably a miracle she convinced him at all.

"Not exactly." Nikola hedged, not sure how much he should tell her. The doctor agreed that he should answer any direct questions she asked but not to offer up any information about her life to try and make her remember.

"What does 'not exactly' mean _exactly_?" Helen asked, becoming more and more frustrated with this life she knew nothing of.

"We have two daughters. Ruby is five and Isabella is two and a half." Nikola said quietly, unsure of how she would take the news of her instant family.

"Five….so…."

"Were there shotguns involved?" Nikola smiled and reached for her hand and was momentarily shocked as she flinched from his touch. "No shotguns, but with your penchant for shooting me I thought it would be wise to get a ring on your finger." He smiled at her.

"Ruby and Isabella". Helen said quietly. "I don't suppose you carry a photo?" Helen asked, knowing it was highly unlikely that a self-absorbed, arrogant vampire would carry a snapshot of children, even if they were his, something she was still having trouble coming to terms with.

"Of course." Nikola removed his wallet an opened it showing two photos. There was one of the two of them which had obviously been taken on their wedding day. There was no denying that it was a photo of two people very much in love. The second photo was a family shot, the two of them, each hugging two perfect little angels. Helen's eyes started to water as she ran her finger over the photo, committing it to memory just in case none of this was real.

After a few moments Helen breathed a sigh of relief and almost laughed. "It's a dream. Of course it's a dream. I don't know why I was getting so worked up. None of this is real. I am going to wake up and feel so foolish." She smiled over at Nikola. "It was nice to see you again, sixty years is far too long." Helen rolled to her side and fell almost immediately asleep, confident in the knowledge that when she woke up her life would be back to normal.


	11. Homecoming

Much to Helen's distress, when she woke up, she had not dreamed everything that had happened the day before. She was in fact married. To an arrogant vampire. With two children she knew nothing about and another two on the way. It wasn't even like she was living a life she had always dreamed of, although, admittedly, she loved the idea that she had a large family. But with Nikola. Really. Looking on the bright side, at least she woke up married to someone she knew and not some complete stranger. Although, the Nikola who had been by her bedside for the last two days may as well have been a stranger. He was thoughtful, caring , worried and a host of other emotions that she found most unNikola-like. If this was the way he was now than she had no doubt she had fallen in love with him. Oh, he could still be an arrogant ass but for some reason it was now more endearing than annoying.

Helen sighed and rolled onto her side. This life she apparently had now was causing her far more of a headache than any car accident could.

::::

"Mr Tesla, there is nothing medically wrong with either your wife or the babies, we think familiar surroundings might start to trigger some memories. While we can't say definitively she will regain her memory, we can find no medical reason she won't." The doctor assigned to Helen's case explained.

"And I don't think you understand how much her life has changed in the last ten years!" Nikola was getting more and more frustrated with the medical staff. "If I take her home none of what she sees will be familiar and I will have to explain why her daughter, that she thinks is alive, is actually dead and not to mention having to explain to her two daughters, she doesn't even remember having, why their mother has no idea who they are!"

"I understand how difficult this is for you but without a medical reason to keep her her…my hands are tied."

Nikola sighed in frustration as he entered Helen's room.

"Well you have your marching orders. These quacks don't think they can help you so I'm afraid you are going to have to rely on the best doctor I know."

"And who would that be?" Helen asked sceptically.

"You."

"Flatterer." Helen gave him a ghost of a smile. "So I assume there is nothing really wrong with me or the babies….aside from the fact that I can't remember their conception."

"I assure you their conception was …spectacular."

Helen actually laughed at that. "Dear Lord. It's good to see nothing's changed in the last ten years."

Nikola got serious and took Helens hand in his, glad that she had stopped flinching at his merest touch. "Helen, that is what I am most worried about, how you are going to react when you realise exactly how much has changed."

"I suppose so." She said quietly. "Can you take me home now? I just want to see Ashley and sleep in my own room. I just want something to feel familiar."

This was the part Nikola had been dreading. It was bad enough watching her mourn her daughter the first time, now that their relationship had changed, and she meant so much more to him…he didn't want to be the one to break her heart.

Nikola sat next to her on the edge of the hospital bed. "Obviously you know things have happened in the last ten years." He started. "Helen, Ashley was killed by the Cabal nine years ago." Nikola watched the colour drain from Helen's face as she sat in silence at his words.

'How? I mean how did it happen?" She whispered. Nikola proceeded to explain everything the Cabal had done to her daughter and how Ashely had ultimately sacrificed her life to save Helen's. As he spoke Nikola didn't take his eyes off Helen and he continued to stroke her hand as the tears rolled down her face.

When he finished speaking he couldn't help but pull Helen into a tight embrace and mourn her loss with her.

An hour later, a very quiet Helen told Nikola she was ready to go home. Nikola couldn't believe he was about to deal her another blow. He began to explain her jaunt back in time and what she built during her 113 years of exile.

"So I'm .." She quickly did the math in her head. "281 years old?"

"Yeah. Although I have to say, you are like a fine red – definitely better with age." Nikola gave her a lopsided grin. "And I've discovered I have a real thing for older women."

Helen rolled her eyes at him. "And I spent 113 years building a new underground sanctuary?"

"It is magnificent Helen. Truly magnificent."

Helen looked at Nikola pleadingly. "I need to remember Nikola. Too much has happened, too much has changed for me not to remember."

"I know."

::::::

Two hours later when they entered the new sanctuary Helen was amazed. It was exactly as Nikola had described it, magnificent. A dream come true really. A Sanctuary for all, hidden away from the worlds governments and their control.

"Mummy!" A beautiful, dark haired child launched herself at Helen. This was obviously Ruby, Helen thought to herself. Nikola had been adamant that their daughters not know about her memory loss, he had argued that they were too young to understand and that it would be too confusing for them and as she didn't even know the girls she had no choice but to defer to his wishes regarding them.

"Ruby." Helen said quietly as she drew her daughter into an embrace, hoping to feel something, anything, some spark of memory. She didn't.

"I'm so sorry that car hit you after you dropped me at school."

"I am too Ruby." As they were talking Izzy had toddled into the room and ran over to her mother.

"Mummy up! Mummy up!" The little girl demanded.

"Go away Izzy! I am hugging mummy first." Ruby declared.

Helen smiled. "I think I can manage a double cuddle." Helen said crouching down and reaching out her arm for the toddler. "Come here Izzy."

Ruby froze. She looked at her mother intently. "_You_ are not my mother!" Ruby struggled to get out of the strangers arms.

Nikola and Helen looked at each other in horror.

Nikola knelt down and pulled Ruby into his arms. "Ruby, I promise you, it's your mother."

"No it's not my mummy, _my mummy_ never calls Izzy 'Izzy', she always calls her Isabella, she hates the name Izzy." Ruby walked over to this stranger who her father said was her mother and stood eye to eye with the kneeling Helen. "What is your name? Your _full_ name?" The little girl demanded.

Helen figured this was a chance to redeem herself in her daughters eyes. She looked at the ring on her finger. "Helen. Helen Magnus – Tesla." Ruby whipped around to glare at her father.

"I told you! _My_ mother would never willingly call herself Tesla!"

Nikola sighed. He should have known his incredibly intelligent daughter would figure this out. "In a way you are right Ruby, but this is most definitely your mother." Nikola moved to put his arm around Helen, very grateful she didn't automatically flinch or pull away. "I told you Mummy hit her head in the accident?" Ruby nodded. "Well the bump made mummy lose some of her memories."

Ruby gasped. "Oh Mummy! You can't remember Izzy or your name? How awful for you."

"I'm afraid it is a bit worse than that Ruby." Helen explained quietly. "I seem to have forgotten the last ten years of my life."

Ruby was silent for a moment. "But that means you don't remember _me_." Helen nodded.

Ruby turned around to her father. "Well what are we doing to get her memories back? _Nobody_ forgets Ruby Tesla!"

Helen had to laugh at the small child's tone and her words, she looked and sounded just like Nikola. Helen looked at the man who had been her friend for over a century and who was, apparently now her husband. "If I had any doubts that she was your daughter, I don't now."


	12. Bedtime Routines

Helen watched in amazement as Nikola changed Isabella's nappy and got her dressed for bed, while at the same time instructing Ruby to get into her pyjamas and clean her teeth.

Nikola saw the look of disbelief on her face. "Okay I'll confess I usually leave the nappy changing to you but in light of the present memory situation…."

"Why does that not surprise me, I think I can remember how to change a nappy Nikola." Helen said. "So this happy family business with you….it's all for show?"

Nikola looked hurt for a moment and then remembered what he had been like ten years ago and could understand where Helen was coming from.

"I'll be honest, when you first sprang the whole baby thing on me my instinct was to run as far and as fast as I could. However, you made it perfectly clear that if I left I would not be welcome back - ever." Nikola told her as her laid Izzy in her little bed. "And then you presented me with the most incredible gift." Nikola scooped Ruby into his arms as she came back into the room. "This little monster." He smothered her in kisses.

"Daddy stop!" Ruby giggled.

"Stop kissing you? Never!" Nikola laughed back at his daughter and turned to Helen. "If you had told me ten years ago that this would be my life I think I would have thought you had gone insane but you and the girls have shown me what being part of a family is like. And while there are certainly times I could live without the noise and mess, I wouldn't trade what we have for anything."

"Not even a Nobel Prize?" Ruby asked with a sly grin.

"Alas, it would have been the crowning glory of my career," Nikola sighed dramatically. "I'm afraid you are going to have to be the first Tesla to win one Ruby."

"So, no pressure then?" Ruby said with the same dramatic flair as her father.

"Nikola?" Helen asked quietly worried that he was putting too much pressure on the young child.

Nikola put his arm around Helen's shoulders. "Don't worry so much Helen, she may look like a normal little girl but she is the child of two geniuses remember. This mouthy little monster will probably win a Nobel Prize before her 18th birthday."

"Daddy you are underestimating me again." Ruby said seriously. Helen couldn't help but smile at the relationship between father and daughter, they clearly adored each other.

"Well even miniature geniuses need their sleep, so bed young lady". Nikola dropped Ruby unceremoniously on her bed and began the routine of tucking in and goodnight kisses.

As she entered her own bedroom a few minutes later Helen froze in front of the king size bed. Nikola was her husband. They shared this bed. Helen couldn't remember the last time she had spent a full night in bed with a man, and that had nothing to do with the amnesia. Spending the night in bed spoke of an intimacy she hadn't felt for a very long time.

Nikola walked into the room and took in Helen's posture and the terrified look on her face. "You look like a frightened virgin." He smiled at her.

Helen cocked her head to the side. "I guess I am in a way." Nikola actually laughed at her response and nodded towards her stomach.

"All evidence to contrary."

"I am when it comes to this….marriage…..sleeping together." She looked at Nikola pleadingly, hoping he would understand her fears.

Nikola moved closer to her, wanting to do nothing more than pull her into a hug but knowing she might not be ready for that. Instead her rubbed up and down her arms.

"Relax Helen. I am not going to force you into anything you aren't ready for. I know I am selfish and arrogant but you do _know_ me, have known me for over a century – just remember that." Nikola smiled endearingly at her. "I'll take the couch until..." He left the rest of the sentence unspoken, not wanting to even entertain the idea that she may not get her memory back.

Helen thought about what he had said. She did know Nikola, maybe not as a husband or a lover but she did know him as a friend and as her friend she knew he would never intentionally hurt her. She looked over at the large comfortable couch and assumed that if their relationship in the present was anywhere as volatile as it had been in the past then Nikola had probably spent any number of nights on that couch.

"Don't be silly Nikola. You always climbed into bed with me when we worked late back at Oxford, I'm sure we can manage to share a bed without…..well you know."

"Indeed I do know." Nikola grinned lasciviously at her. "Are you going to make a wall of pillows like you did back in the Oxford days?"

"Do I need to?" She challenged him.

Nikola appeared to seriously be considering the need for a pillow barrier. "No, I think I can sufficiently restrain myself, but the real question is, can you?" He challenged right back.

"Oh I think I will manage." She smiled at him.

Ten minutes later they were in bed. On opposites sides of the very large bed. Helen was tossing and turning trying to get comfortable. "Is having me here making you uncomfortable? I can still sleep on the couch." Nikola suggested.

Helen sighed deeply. "Quite the opposite in fact. Would you…could you….do you think you could just hold me?"

Nikola relaxed and moved closer to his wife. "Of course."

Helen rolled onto her side and Nikola spooned behind her, his hand gently caressing her stomach the way he did every night and he felt Helen relax. "Your brain may not remember me but apparently your body does."

Helen turned her head to look at him questioningly.

"This is how we sleep. I like to hold you while you sleep, it brings out my protective instinct." He smiled at her.

"I don't need protecting." Helen announced.

"Oh I know that better than anyone, but I like to do it any way. By the way there is something you should know."

"I don't think I can take any more surprises today. Can it wait until tomorrow?" Helen begged.

"Well it could, but if we sleep like this you might be in for a shock in the morning."

"Nikola!"

"I can't help it. I am pretty sure my body isn't going to realise yours has lost it's memory and well in the mornings….."

"What? Every morning?" Helen asked shocked.

Nikola dropped a chaste kiss on her neck. "Every morning and sometimes nights too. I'm insatiable." He grinned.

"No wonder we have all these children!"

"That, my dear is all your doing."

"Oh I have a feeling you had something to do with it." Helen grinned back at him. They lay together in comfortable silence and just as Helen was drifting off Nikola heard her murmur. "What if I never remember, we have created this perfect life, what if I never remember it?"

"You are the most determined, pig headed person I know, Helen Magnus, I have no doubt you will remember, and it for some reason you don't then we start making new memories together and I set about making you fall in love with me all over again."

"Halfway there already." Were the last beautiful words Nikola heard Helen mutter before drifting off to sleep.


	13. Progress

**I wrote a smutty little outtake that takes place between this chapter and the last - it's called Morning Love and really, the title says it all - you certainly don't have to read it for this next chapter to make sense. I hope everyone had a lovely Valentines Day and thanks again to everyone who has reviewed this story - it has absolutley amazed me what a fantastic response it has had.**

Ruby Tesla was a girl on a mission. Her mother had been home from the hospital for three days and she was no closer to getting her memory back. Ruby shook her head as she gathered the things she thought she might need, for the life of her she could not work out how her parents thought they could get Helens memories back by sleeping in every morning and going to bed early each night. Sometimes her parents could be so strange.

With her arms loaded up with photo albums and her tablet, Ruby entered her parents' bedroom only to find them both still in bed and panting like they had just run a race.

"Lying in bed all morning is not going to get mummy's memories back." She announced.

Nikola sat bolt upright in bed, wondering just how much his inquisitive daughter had seen and heard. Judging by the lack of questions, probably not a lot. He could feel Helen giggling at his side. "Ruby Tesla! How many times have you been told to knock before entering this room?"

Ruby looked worriedly at her father. "Lots" she said quietly.

"And yet you never do." Nikola sighed, resigned to the fact that they were going to have to put a lock on the bedroom door.

"I just want to help mummy."

Helen sat up and smiled at the little girl. "What did you have in mind Ruby?"

"Well I thought if you could see all the things you have missed you might remember something, so I have all the photos and videos". She lifted the pile in her arms slightly so her mother could see.

Nikola smiled at Ruby. "Genius child! Why don't you take all that stuff down to your mothers' office and we will meet you there as soon as we have had a shower."

Ruby left the room happily and Helen turned to Nikola. "So why haven't you shown me photos?"

Nikola shrugged. "The doctors thought it would be better to try and get your memories to return without any visual prompts."

"And now?"

"Well they don't seem to be retuning with other more….physical prompts, so it's probably time to try something else." Nikola explained simply.

"And Ruby?"

"We have learned over the years that when she wants to be involved in something it's better to try and find a way to include her rather than to try and shut her out." Nikola laughed.

"Dare I ask why?"

"Because when we make the mistake of trying to shut her out of things she just finds a way to include herself whether we like it or not and the consequences are ….often interesting."

"Dear Lord! She sounds just like you!"

"Yes…well…you have said that a few times before." Nikola looked a bit sheepish.

"Well come on then my troublemaking vampire, I get the feeling if we leave our daughter too long she is just going to come back up here looking for us."

"Oh indeed she will. Perhaps if we shower together it will save time?" Nikola asked hopefully.

Helen laughed. "Not a chance. We both know we will never make it down to my office if we do that."

Thirty minutes later Helen and Nikola walked into Helens office hand in hand.

Ruby looked up from the photos she was looking at. "Well it took you long enough! I was about to come looking for you." Nikola shot Helen and 'I told you' so look.

"Well we are here now, and I for one, am anxious to start looking through these photos." Helen smiled at Ruby as she sat next to her and drew her into a hug.

"I thought we could start with either my baby photos or the wedding?"

"Wedding I think". Nikola said. There were a few too many of Ruby's baby photos that made him look ridiculously inept as a father, Helen didn't need to see those before he had a chance to censor them.

Ruby expertly opened up a folder on the tablet she held. The first photo was of Helen sitting behind her desk.

"I thought these were our wedding photos?"

"They are." Nikola explained. "Young Ruby here, was taking up so much of your time around the wedding that you had to snatch times to work whenever you could – you, being the romantic that you are, chose the morning of our wedding to catch up on paperwork." Nikola said sarcastically.

Ruby, sensing this could all turn bad quickly, expertly swiped her finger across the screen. The next photo was of Nikola lying on their bed, dressed in a tuxedo sound asleep with Ruby asleep on his stomach.

"Asleep Nikola?" Helen asked.

"I may not need much sleep but by the time our wedding day rolled around I hadn't slept in over three weeks thanks to our darling daughter". He leaned over and kissed Ruby's forehead to show he wasn't really angry with her. "Even _I_ need more than that."

"So basically you are showing me that on the day of our wedding I worked and you caught up on sleep, it doesn't exactly sound like an auspicious start to our marriage." Helen said actually sounding concerned.

Nikola leaned over and whispered in her ear. "The day may have gotten off to a rough start but I assure you by the end of the night you were completely…..satisfied." He grinned mischievously.

Ruby quickly swiped through the photos until she found her favourite one. Helen looked at the photo Ruby presented and her hormones kicked into overdrive as she started to tear up. There in front of the Sanctuary waterfall, was a photo of Helen, Nikola and Ruby. Clearly they had no idea the camera was aimed at them but whoever was behind the lens managed to capture an intimate family moment where you could easily see the love between the couple and how much they loved the child between them.

It took a moment for Helen to compose herself. "So we got married here?"

Nikola laughed remembering their conversation about their wedding. "I asked if you wanted a big church wedding and you laughed at me and said you couldn't really imagine wearing a white dress as you carried out illegitimate daughter down the isle of a church that worshipped a god that neither of us believed in."

Helen laughed, she could certainly imagine saying something like that.

"What is illegitimate daddy?"

"Ummmm…" Nikola looked to Helen for help but she just smiled that smile that told him he got himself into this, he could get himself out of it. "Well…it means…..you were in such a hurry to be part of our family that you couldn't wait for mummy and I to get married." Nikola hoped she would be satisfied with his answer.

"So I'm not illegitimate anymore?"

"Absolutely not." Helen said.

The next photo was of the two of them dancing closely, obviously lost in an intense conversation. "Do you remember what we were talking about?" Helen asked.

"I believe you were informing me that Ruby would be accompanying us on our honeymoon. As you can see by the look on my face I was less than enthusiastic, it kind of put a bit of a crimp in my honeymoon plans."

Helen smiled thinking of only one reason she would insist on taking their daughter on their honeymoon. "I assume I was insisting because she was still being breastfed?"

"Constantly." Nikola sighed, remembering how often his daughter seemed to want to feed in those early days. "For a while there it seemed like she was permanently attached to your breast."

"I am sitting right here you know." Piped up Ruby, not at all sure she like this topic of conversation.

"Actually if my memory serves me correctly I believe I was promised a make-up honeymoon."

Helen grinned. "Well then, when my memory returns and I'm certain you aren't just making that up perhaps I will have to make good on that promise."

The next photo Ruby showed her was one of Helen sitting by the small lake at the base of the waterfall. Helen frowned at the photo. It was clearly taken after the celebrations had ended. She turned to Nikola. "You took this!" She said excitedly. Nikola grinned widely hoping she might remember more. "We went swimming….there's a ledge behind the waterfall and we swam to it and we ….."

"Ah ah ah little ears remember. But yes we did." Nikola smiled widely. "You're remembering." His tone of voice giving away how relieved he was.

"Well I hardly think remembering a swim is all that significant. She still can't remember _me_!" Ruby said indignantly.

Helen pulled Ruby into a hug. "Maybe not yet but at least I have remembered something and that gives me hope that the rest will come back soon."


	14. A Bit More Progress

**Thank you Emmy1512 for the smutty out take from this saga - If you haven't read it go take a look at Make Up Sex (but only if you are old enough though) it was awesome. Thanks also to everyone who has reviewed this story, every single one of them has bought a smile to my face, I have tried to respond to all the signed in reviews - if I missed an my apologies. On with some more Rubiness...**

Helen walked into her office and sat behind her desk. While it may not be the office or desk she remembered, it was similar enough that she felt she could actually accomplish some work. She immediately looked to her inbox and saw …nothing. She frowned mildly perplexed. Even with amnesia surely there should be something …anything ..in her inbox. She immediately opened her computer diary for the past week and saw a couple of meetings and a video conference. The frown deepened, she was head of the Sanctuary, ten years ago she was working up to eighteen hour days and now, according to her diary she would be lucky to work four hours a day.

"Morning mummy!" Nikola strolled into the office with Isabella in his arms and Ruby riding on his shoulders.

"Good morning." Helen said almost absently.

Nikola put Isabella on the floor to play with the toys kept in the office and Ruby shimmied down her fathers back. "I know that look. What's wrong?"

"Hmmmm?" Helen responded distractedly. "Oh, someone seems to have wiped my diary."

"Really?" Nikola seemed almost shocked. "Let me have a look." He turned the laptop around and tapped on a few keys. After a moment he looked up at her. "No they haven't."

"Then what the hell do I do with my time?" She asked.

"Hell, hell, hell, hell". Isabella sang from the floor.

Helen and Nikola turned to look at her. "Oops" Helen said. "I really need to get used to having a little mimic around again."

"So, mummy have you remembered me yet?" Ruby asked as she moved around her mothers desk and crawled onto her lap.

Helen's arms automatically wrapped around the little girl. "I'm afraid not, but I did remember your father kissing me in Rome." Helen smiled at Nikola.

"Why do you just remember the mushy stuff with daddy, I am far more important than that." Ruby asked indignantly.

Nikola laughed. "Without the 'mushy stuff', as you so eloquently put it, there would be no you. I think the important thing is that your mother is remembering."

"I suppose." Ruby sighed.

Helen squeezed the little girl on her lap. "I know I will remember you soon sweetheart. I already love you so much I can't believe I could ever forget someone as wonderful as you for very long." Ruby snuggled closer to her mother, placated by her mothers words.

"Now getting back to the distinct lack of entries in my diary, would you care to explain what I do with my time?" Helen looked to her husband while continuing to cuddle her daughter.

Nikola wasn't she how she was going to take what he was about to tell her. It had taken them several years to negotiate her working day to something they were both happy with. "Unless there is an emergency that no-one else can handle you only work four hours a day, les if I can enticeyou away." Nikola grinned letting her know exactly how he enticed her away from work.

"How on earth do I accomplish anything?" Helen asked stunned that she would ever agree to something like that.

"You have learned a new word."

Ruby giggled from her mother's lap thinking it was funny that daddy thought there were any words her mother didn't know. Helen lifted and eyebrow letting Nikola know that he had better finish this story and quickly.

"Delegation, my dear. At your ripe old age you have finally mastered the art of delegation. Your micro managing ways are a thing of the past."

Helen was stunned. "I can't imagine I gave up control of my network willingly or easily."

Nikola smiled remembering how much they had argued over this very topic. "Ah no. In fact I would go as far as saying we have never argued about anything more the whole time we have been married. Although there was a silver lining."

"What?" She aked warily.

"The way we kissed and made up was always rather fun." He grinned at her.

"Yes I'm sure it was." She replied sarcastically. "Again I ask, what do I do with my time?"

"You teach Izzy and m to swim." Ruby said. "I love swimming, can we do it today? Oh can you remember how?"

Helen smiled indulgently. "I think I remember how, and I would love to swim with you."

"You are also doing a lot more work in your lab, but don't ask me on what, you know my interest in the 'soft' sciences is minimal." Nikola told her. "You have heads of departments who give you daily reports. You have heads for new intakes, hunting, R&D, that would be moi by the way, heads of security, general maintenance and believe it or not Huggybear has proved to be quite a useful second in command."

"But what I don't understand is why? Why would I build up something like this just to hand it over to others to run."

Nikola looked pointedly at Ruby and Izzy. Helen nodded her head in understanding.

"By the way, you and I even manage some child free, sanctuary free time at least three times a week."

"That can't possibly take up an entire day though."

"Helen Ruby can speak four languages fluently, she can read and write well beyond her age, she can take apart any electrical appliance and put it back together. When I have said that Ruby is a genius I wasn't just boasting because she is my child. School barely keeps her intellectually occupied for the day, and we agreed she should go for the socialization she needs far more educational challenges that they can provide."

"Are you sure we aren't pushing her?" Helen asked worriedly.

"Ruby what's your favourite part of the day?" Nikola asked her in Serbian.

"When I come home from school and get to do stuff with you and mummy." Ruby answered in fluent Serbian.

"Helen, don't worry so much we also teach her photography, cooking, she and Henry are creating a video game, believe me she has fun. We learnt the hard was that it's when Ruby isn't occupied that we have trouble."

"How many times are you going to bring that up daddy?" Ruby asked indignantly.

"Oh at least until your 200th birthday." Nikola laughed. "Young Ruby here was bored one afternoon when she was about three and she managed to hack into the weather program for the sanctuary and changed it to rain. It took a month of torrential downpours before we realised."

Ruby pouted, she couldn't believe her father still bought up that story, although it was probably better than if he found out she reprogrammed all the clocks in the sanctuary to run twenty minutes fast. It had been over a year now and still no-one had twigged.

Nikola recognised the look on his daughters face all too well, she was angry he bought up the rain story but she was definitely hiding something. "Oh I almost forgot, you also give Ruby ballet lessons, every day."

"Daddy! You promised you wouldn't remind her about that!" Ruby was mortified. She loved her mother more than anything but she HATED ballet lessons, as far as she was concerned no ballet lessons was the only advantage of her mother's amnesia.

"Enough with the chit chat, if you want to swim with your mother later we need to get down to the kitchen and have some breakfast." Nikola scooped Isabella off the floor.

"Just no ice cream." Helen said as Ruby climbed off her lap and she turned to look at her emails.

Nikola looked at his wife, startled. "What did you say?"

Helens face broke out in a smile and then she laughed. "I remember you feeding Ruby ice cream for breakfast and she vomited all over you."

"Yes, well, I learned my lesson after that one." Nikola was clearly still embarrassed about that incident.

"You remembered something about ME!" Ruby was beyond excited.


	15. Where's Ruby?

**Thousands of thankyous and caffine filled marshmallows to Emmy1512 who read over this to find all my typos because I have broken a finger. Also to everyone who has reviewed the last couple of chapters - I am so sorry I haven't had a chance to respond to them all individually but your kind words inspire me to keep writing and always put a smile on my face. Anyway on with the story that I was getting ready to wrap up but as you will see has kind of taken a bit of an epic turn...**

Helen debated whether she should ignore the phone ringing in her pocket. She had no more than 15 minutes of work time left before she took Isabella down to the pool for a swim. Curiosity got the better of her and she looked at the display to see who was calling. Her heart sank a bit when she saw it was Ruby's school.

"Helen Magnus speaking." She answered.

"Ah Mrs Tesla?" The woman on the other end of the phone asked, confused.

Helen cringed at the use of the name. "Yes, this is Mrs Tesla." Since her memory started coming back in tiny chunks about a month ago, that was one of the things she certainly remembered, why in this day and age her daughters school could not manage to deal with the fact that while they were married, Ruby's parents had different last names. Another of the memories to have returned was how much of a handful Nikola's daughter was. She sighed. "What has Ruby done now?"

There was a moments' pause that allowed Helen enough time to get really worried. "It isn't so much what she has done, but more where she is."

"And where exactly is she?" Helen asked, bracing herself for the worst.

"That's just it, we don't know." The woman on the other end of the phone said quietly.

"Are you telling me you have lost my daughter?" Helen's voice rose. Nikola walked into her office just in time to hear Helen's last comment.

"Tell her we are on our way." Nikola commanded.

Twenty minutes later Helen and Nikola were sitting in the principal's office with Ruby's teacher, the principal and two police officers. "Would you care to explain how exactly you have managed to misplace my daughter?" Nikola asked sarcastically, but Helen could tell by his tone he was actually quite worried.

"I'm sorry Mr Tesla." The teacher apologised timidly. "She was in class before recess but when the children returned after play time she didn't return to the classroom."

The Principal took up the story. "We have looked all over the school grounds and asked all the children if they have seen her, but unfortunately Ruby is a bit of a loner and doesn't tend to 'play' with the other children.

The police officer took some notes and said, "Right, we will start canvassing the area and asking if anyone saw anything, if you have a recent photo that would be helpful." Nikola removed Ruby's last school photo from his wallet. "In the meantime if you could make a list of places Ruby likes to go and we can start making some calls."

Helen and Nikola sat there looking at each other. There were no places on the surface that their daughter liked to frequent and they realised at that moment they were failing in the one thing they wanted, to give their children a 'normal' upbringing.

"There really isn't anywhere we can think of, she, ah, tends to like being at home." Nikola thought back to that morning when his daughter had asked him when he thought she would be old enough to have her own lab. He had laughed at her at the time, assuming it was like other children wanting childish things like their own stereo. Now he was wondering if his reaction may have been the catalyst for her disappearance and guilt began to eat at him.

The police officer turned to the worried parents. "Perhaps you should return home and search your house in case she came home, or if she left any clues to where she may have gone."

Helen thought of the size of the sanctuary and multitude of places her resourceful daughter could hide if she wanted to. As soon as they left the office she planned to call Henry to get every piece of tech at their disposal to begin the search for her daughter.

As they left the office Nikola pulled Helen aside and told her of his morning conversation with their daughter. Helen began to think, she may not have all her memories back but she did know that her daughter was as focussed and single minded as her father, if she had asked for a lab this morning then she had something churning around in her brilliant little mind that required a lab.

"Nikola, when you were a child and you had an idea what did you do?"

"Anything I could to test my theory and make it reality." He answered immediately.

"So if you were five and you had an idea that required a lab and your father thought you were joking when you asked for one, what would you have done?"

Nikola got a look of relieved excitement on his face, no-one had taken his little girl, she was merely lost in a world of scientific discovery somewhere. He thought about the facts at hand. She had definitely been at school and, as far as they knew, she hadn't returned home to the Sanctuary.

"The high school." He announced. If he had been in Ruby's situation he would have headed to the nearest high school and found an empty lab.

Helen and Nikola shared an understanding look that they would check out their high school theory before telling the school and the police.

Thankfully the primary school shared a block with the high school, all the more reason Ruby would be there Nikola thought. They found the science block easily and located the most secluded, empty lab. A quick peek inside proved to Helen that Nikola and his daughter definitely thought alike, because there she was, standing on a chair in front of a whiteboard scribbling notes frantically and rubbing them out and replacing them with something else.

Nikola entered the room, all worry about his daughter replaced with fascination for the theory she was producing on the whiteboard. Helen remained in the doorway and removed her phone from her pocket so she could call the school to let them know that Ruby had been found and would be remaining at home for the rest of the day. She sighed, recognising the identical looks on her husband and daughters faces, that same wonderous look they got when making a new discovery.

Nikola made one small change to the equation, changing a plus to a minus. Ruby looked up, noticing her fathers presence for the first time and smiled. As she looked at the change he made the smile turned to a slight frown. Her face then broke into a wide grin. "Thank you daddy, I knew there was something wrong I just couldn't work out what." She returned to her scribblings as Nikola returned to his wife's side.

"She needs her own lab." He said succinctly.

"I figured." Helen answered with a smile. "So what…?" She waved her hand towards the whiteboard.

"Nothing much really." Nikola said barely able to contain his pride. "She has just come up with a theory for opening a time portal. One that won't have any radioactive side effects."

Helen gasped and her hand automatically covering her mouth, recognising the implications of what her daughter had done. At the sound of her mother's gasp Ruby turned with a huge grin on her face.

"Mummy!" She said excitedly. "Look what I have done."

"Daddy just told me." Helen said quietly, stilled stunned by what her five year old was capable of.

"I was so sad when you couldn't remember me. I felt like you were lost and then I thought about how you must feel like that all the time since you lost my big sister so I figured out a way to bring her back so you won't have to feel sad anymore."

Helen felt the tears rolling down her face. "Oh Ruby! I can't believe you would do something so amazing for me, but I don't know if we can."

"Oh no, we can, the equation works now that daddy fixed it." Helen looked to Nikola for support. He merely shrugged letting her know that indeed the equation did work.

"No. I mean I don't know if we should. We could be rewriting history."

Nikola wrapped his arm around his wife. "Ruby and I might be the geniuses in the family but sometimes I think you overwork that delightful brain of yours. Helen, the single most devastating event in your life was losing Ashley, your daughter has given you a way to end that suffering…..take it." He said quietly.

Helen pulled Ruby into a hug and looked at Nikola, tears still streaming, and nodded.


	16. New Memories

**For those of you concerned I was about to start futzing with the time line have no fear all will be explained. Big thank you to Emmy1512 for boosting my ego and for living in the same time zone as me and being available all hours of the night and day.**

Should she or shouldn't she? It was the question that had been playing on Helen's mind for weeks. Nikola had told her she was overthinking it and to just do it but she knew he wasn't weighing up the long term implications of saving Ashley. For now, she had decided to hold off on making any firm decision until after the twins arrived in about six weeks.

Helen reached down and massaged her overactive twins, hoping to calm them so she could get some sleep, something that had been in short supply since Ruby had pulled her disappearing act. The headache that had been threatening for a week now was also moving into high gear, further delaying the oblivion of sleep.

As she rolled to her other side, so Nikola was spooning her, a pain so great that it felt like her head was going to explode, overcame her. She must have groaned aloud because Nikola sat bolt upright in bed.

"Is it the babies? Are they coming?" He asked in equal parts of terror and excitement.

"No! Wrong end!" She moaned.

"Helen, last time I checked they were in the middle so you are going to have to elaborate." Nikola said reasonably.

Helen groaned again and curled into the foetal position. "Head!" Was all she managed to get out.

"Do I need to take you to the infirmary? Get you some pain medication?" He asked at a loss to know what to do.

"No!" Helen cried. "Don't move me!"

Nikola looked at his wife, worry etched into his features. This was worse than childbirth. At least during childbirth when she was in pain and abusing him, he knew she got over it and was very loving towards him when she first held that new little baby in her arms. He had been wondering the last few weeks if she would be extra-loving because she would have a baby in each arm this time. He gave himself a mental shake 'focus Nikola!'

"What can I do?" He asked at a loss to know what was happening and what he could do to ease her pain.

"Cold face cloth." Helen gasped, clearly in a great deal of pain.

Nikola jumped off the bed and Helen groaned at the sudden movement.

"Oops. Sorry". He went in to the bathroom and got the requested face cloth and gently placed it over Helens forehead and eyes.

For the next fifteen minutes Helen writhed in pain until she eventually passed out, at which time Nikola scooped her into his arms and took her to the infirmary. While she had been in their room, clutching her head, Nikola had an idea of what may be happening. He hooked her up so he could monitor her brain activity and sure enough every few seconds there were fluctuations. Helen's memories were finally returning.

She had been in the infirmary for just over an hour when she sat up in bed. "Bloody hell".

"Are you alright?" Nikola asked, concerned by her sitting up so suddenly.

"I'm fine, my memories have returned but we need to find Ruby – fast!"

"Helen you need to rest."

"No! I need to find _your_ daughter and give her a good talking to."

"What are you talking about?"

"I didn't lose ten years of memories Nikola, I lost 123 years and they have all come flooding back with a vengeance, however, I find I have a few new ones."

"Helen! Stop being obtuse and tell me what the hell you are talking about." Nikola demanded.

"It seems I now remember Ashley's little friend Ruby who came to visit us every couple of days when Ashley was about six." Helen turned to Nikola in fright. "It seems our daughter has been putting her theory to the test and travelling through time on a regular basis to visit her sister."

"Bloody hell."

Helen would have laughed at his mimicking of her words if the situation hadn't been so serious.

The worried parents entered Ruby's room to find their daughter siting on her bed reading a Harry Potter novel, looking like any normal five year old child. She looked up when she saw her parents and had a feeling that whatever they were here for was not good, especially for her. Ruby flashed them the cutest smile in her repertoire.

"That smile is not going to work on me young lady." Helen announced. 'Damn' Ruby thought, her father may be a genius but it was her mother who was smart. "My memories have returned." Helen informed her.

"That is great mummy. Do you remember everything?" Ruby asked with genuine excitement, her mothers loss of memories had been playing on Ruby's mind for months.

"Yes I remember everything, including Ashley's little friend Ruby who suddenly started visiting when Ashley was about six."

"Oh." Was all the response Ruby could manage, this was bad, very, very bad.

"Indeed, 'Oh'. Would you care to explain these particular memories to me young lady?"

"Not really. I have the feeling they are going to get me in a whole lot of trouble." Ruby answered quietly while her mind worked through various scenarios to get her out of this.

"Ruby!" Nikola spoke for the first time, still having trouble processing the fact that his daughter had mastered time travel.

"Sorry daddy. It's just mummy was taking so long making up her mind and I wanted to meet my big sister so badly, I thought I could go and just visit until mummy decided." The little girl explained logically.

"Ruby Tesla! You have no idea of the implications of time travel, your actions could have irrevocably changed the time line. Time travel is not something to toy with when the whim takes you it can have far reaching effects that you have no understanding of!" Helen was scared and furious and emotional all at the same time.

"I'm sorry mummy". Ruby said quietly. "But in a way it was you who changed the timeline when you came into Ashley's room that day." Helen remembered walking into Ashley's bedroom to find two little girls having a tea party and discussing different tea blends.

"Ruby Tesla don't you dare try and blame me for this mess. If I had any idea who you were …." Helen couldn't in all honesty finish the sentence because, at the time, the truth was, she had been far too happy that Ashley had made a friend and she knew the scientist in her would have been fascinated by her daughter from the future. "What if something you did back then meant that daddy and I never fell in love?"

"Wouldn't have happened, I've always loved you." Nikola whispered in her ear.

"Not helping Nikola!"

"If I hadn't fallen in love with daddy" Helen looked pointedly at her husband, "you, Isabella and the twins may never have existed."

"Oh." Ruby said quietly, processing the implications of what her mother said as tears slowly began to well in her eyes. "I'm so sorry mummy." Ruby started to cry. "I didn't think of that," she sobbed. "I just wanted to meet Ashley so badly and to stop you being sad."

Helen moved to her daughter's bed and sat down, pulling Ruby into a hug. "I understand why you did it but you have to remember that while you may have a brilliant mind you are still only five and may not fully understand the implications of your actions. I will always be sad that I lost Ashley at such a young age but I have to believe that everything happens for a reason. I want you to promise me that there will be no more time travelling – ever."

"I promise mummy." Ruby hiccupped. "I guess this means that you won't be saving Ashley?"

"I will admit to being very tempted, but you have reminded me that we have no right to re-write history. To save her in the past may mean I completely change my future and I wouldn't want to change anything about my life at the moment."

"You," Nikola pointed at his daughter, "are getting off very lightly. From now on I want complete access to everything you are working on. And I mean everything."

"Yes Daddy."

"Come on then, down to the infirmary. We need to make sure all this time travelling has had no effect on your body." Helen said.

"Will there be needles?" Ruby paled at the thought of needles.

"Quite a few I should imagine." Helen smirked. She had forgotten how much her daughter hated needles, perhaps this would be enough of a punishment.

Ruby took a deep breath, ready to face the inevitable medical procedures she was about to endure and preceded her parents out the door.

Helen took the hand Nikola offered to help her up off the bed. "I hold you responsible for this." She informed him.

Nikola was shocked. "I had less of an idea what was going on than you did."

"She may get her looks from me, but the brains definitely come from you!"

Nikola smiled proudly, "Yes they do, don't they?"

Helen shook her head. "Only your daughter could break the laws of physics and lord knows what else to go on a play date!" Helen shook her head, terrified of what challenges puberty was going to bring, somehow she didn't think driving lessons and broken hearts were going to even rate a mention. She grinned at the thought.


	17. Surprises

**As some of you know I have snapped the tendon in my finger which is making typing a bit of a challenge and I will confess that I have lost momentum for this story - so here it is the end! I know some of you will ask for more (yes I know who you are) and while I am not ruling it out completely the muse has kind of abandoned me on this story but I do have another one floating around in my head...so as soon as I master the art of typing with a big chunk of plaster on one finger...**

**Most importantly though I would sincerely like to thank everyone who has read this story, whether you have left me a review or not I cannot express how amazing it is to know that so many people are reading and enjoying something a boring old Aussie mum of four has written. Many many thankyous you all make this time consuming hobby so worthwhile.**

Helen was sitting on the couch in their living area when Isabella toddled over and crawled into what was left of her mother's lap. She had been doing this more often in the last two weeks and Helen had begun to notice an odd correlation between the behaviour and the twins. The babies ceased their overactive movements when Isabella was near – almost like her mere presence had a calming effect on them. She put down the papers she was reading and watched her daughter intently.

Isabella gently rubbed her mother's stomach and then leaned down to kiss them. Only it wasn't a kiss Helen felt, but more a kind of murmuring of baby babble that made no sense to her but clearly did to Isabella. When she finished babbling Isabella looked up at her mother with the most beautiful smile and said "Babies ready now."

"Are they my beautiful Isabella?'

"Babies come soon." Isabella snuggled up to her mother and Helen had to admit it was times like this she cherished the most. No-one wanted anything from her, she didn't have to keep track of Ruby and Nikola, she could just enjoy snuggling on the lounge with her little girl. It was while they were snuggling Helen felt her first contraction. It wasn't overly strong or painful but Isabella must have felt her body tense slightly because she said, "mummy babies come?"

"It seems you are right Isabella, the babies are ready to come." They remained sitting on the lounge together for the next half hour, for some reason Helen found sitting with her daughter while in labour oddly calming.

Helen knew she should start walking to help the labour progress and she should really inform Nikola of the imminent arrival. Reluctantly she stood and grasped Isabella's hand. "Let's go and find daddy." The little girl nodded.

They eventually found Nikola in Henry's lab sitting on the couch with his feet on the coffee table. Helen did a double take, he had a gaming controller in his hands.

"Oh dude, you just got sooooo busted." Henry laughed.

Nikola looked at his wife with a guilty smile. "It isn't what it looks like." He tried.

"Are you sitting here with my head of security playing video games while I am in labour with your children?" She asked sarcastically.

"Well, yes, wait. What? Did you just say…"

"Yes, it appears these two are just as impatient as their father."

"I resent that, I am not impatient, I just don't see the point in wasting time. So are we headed to the infirmary?" Nikola asked.

"Not yet, I think I would like to take a walk around the grounds first."

Nikola sighed, knowing it would be pointless to argue with her. He didn't understand why she couldn't just lie on a bed and give birth like a normal woman. And therein lay his answer – nothing about Helen Magnus was normal. "A walk it is."

"You want me to take dizzy Izzy?" Henry asked as he reached out for the child.

Izzy clung more closely to her mother, which surprised all of them because next to her parents Henry was Izzy's favourite adult. "Thanks Henry but I think she senses something is about to happen, but if you wouldn't mind being available for a bit of babysitting later I would appreciate it."

"No worries Doc – you go…contract. I'll be here."

Nikola lifted Isabella into his arms. "So let's find Ruby and take a family walk."

They found Ruby in her lab working on something Nikola appeared excited about and Helen knew was probably one of those things it was better she didn't know about. Ruby was reluctant to leave what she was working on to do something as mundane as walk but she saw the expression on her father's face and new this was one of those non-negotiable family events she would have no choice about participating in.

The family walked slowly for about an hour, stopping every five minutes while Helen continued to have mild contractions, before settling on the park bench in front of the waterfall – somewhere Helen had always found calming. Nikola supervised the girls as they paddled their feet. While they were splashing Helen noticed Isabella kept rubbing at her neck. She had noticed her doing it on and off for the last hour but it seemed to be intensifying and actually beginning to cause the child some distress.

"Nikola, can you bring Isabella over here? I want to make sure she is not having an allergic reaction to something."

Nikola placed the child in Helen's lap and went to retrieve Ruby out of the water. Helen checked Isabella's neck and airway but could find nothing except a slight discolouration of her skin from the rubbing.

"Does your throat hurt?" Helen asked gently as she stroked her daughter's long blonde hair.

"No." Isabella answered as she curled herself around her mother's swollen stomach and placed her hand on it.

"Then why are you rubbing your neck?"

"Not me – baby". Isabella answered.

Suddenly the strange occurrences of the last couple of weeks fell into place and Helen looked up at her husband startled.

"Nikola! She's an empath. Isabella is an empath!"

"Helen, don't be ridiculous, she's three, you can't possibly know that."

"Nikola think about it, the way the babies calm down whenever she is around, the way she speaks to them." Helen began to remember instances from when Isabella was a baby. "Dear god, she has always been one. Remember when she was about one and that abnormal stowed away in a shipment and spent a week terrorising the residents in the high security wing - it was the same week Isabella cried for a week and we thought she was sick but could find nothing wrong."

"Maybe. And that is a big maybe, what is with all the neck rubbing?"

Helen was thoughtful for a moment. "Dear God we need to get to the infirmary." She stood and started walking only to stop as she felt a wet gush between her legs. "Nikola!" Helen looked at him panicked.

"Ruby, run ahead and let the big guy know mum is ready to have the babies." Ruby's eyes widened at her father's words.

"Ah sure daddy." She called over her shoulder as she ran off.

"Helen?" Nikola questioned as his wife finished breathing through her contraction.

"Isabella's rubbing…I think the cord is around one of the babies necks."

On hearing this Nikola realised that even if Helen was completely wrong about Isabella's abilities it was not something he was going to take a chance on. He scooped Isabella up and held Helen's hand as they made their way to the infirmary.

Once they reached the infirmary everything moved very quickly. Henry came and got a sobbing Isabella, while the big guy hooked Helen up to a foetal monitor. It took less than five minutes hooked up the monitor for Helen and her old friend to realise one of the babies was in distress. Ten minutes after that Nikola was holding a healthy baby in each arm while Helen was being stitched up after an emergency c-section.

:::::::

"Helen, Helen time to wake up." Nikola stroked his wife's hair in an effort to wake her from the anaesthetic.

Groggily she opened her eyes, immediately turning her head to see two bassinets by the bed. "Are they….?" She croaked.

Nikola passed her a glass of water. "They are both perfect. I'm not sure who to thank, you or Isabella, but between you, you saved a life today. The big guy said there was no way the baby would have survived much longer. The more distressed it was becoming the tighter the cord was getting." Nikola smiled at his wife with, what she was sure, was a tear in his eye. "Always knew you were incredible – today you proved it to me again." He leaned in to kiss her.

Helen reached up to stroke his cheek. "So what did we have?" She asked with a smile.

"Oh like you don't already know". Nikola smiled indulgently. "I know you looked on the ultrasound."

"Two more daughter's for you to have to deal with?" She smiled.

"Well the first two have turned out spectacularly well, so I have high hopes for the second two."

Helen laughed. "You aren't disappointed not to have a son?"

Nikola was thoughtful. He had honestly never even thought about having a son, he loved his daughters more than he ever thought possible but perhaps a son would be nice, if for no other reason than to keep all these girls in line.

Nikola grinned broadly, "maybe next time."

The end


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